A while ago, I read Mel Chua's Mission Statement. It's had me thinking the last few weeks as to what are my values? What is my mission statement?
I had redesigned my website at the time to be simpler, and I also had tweaked my resume as I had started a new job. I now had three similar definitions of myself.
On my website, I say:
Nat Welch
Software Reconnaissance Engineer
Promoting communication, creativity and sharing on the Internet.
Automating things and building software tools to make maintaining the internet easier.
Advocating for transparency, remix culture and open source software.
On my resume I say:
Nat Welch
Software Reconnaissance Engineer
I am a full-stack web developer who enjoys experimenting to find intersections in technology and daily life. I like building beautiful tools and powerful ways for people to share knowledge, advice and experiences.
Outside of the tech-world I am an Eagle Scout. I enjoy contributing to open source projects, reading, listening to music and wandering through cities and countrysides.
On Twitter I say:
Software Reconnaissance Engineer. Currently: #Hillary2016 Previously: @littlebits, @RecurseCenter SP2'15, @GoogleCloud, @Punchd, @iFixit, LDN, SF, SLO.
I am now thinking about whether my actions and direction match how I describe myself to the internet (and I guess the rest of the world). I have this vision of myself, is it accurate? Do I like this description of myself? How can I change my reality to match better with these descriptions? What do I want in reality that does not currently exist?
Also, how do I explain to others what I think a Software Reconnaissance Engineer is? It started as a joke at Google when I was trying to pick my title, but I love the idea now. I just need a way to verbalize it.
Lots of questions that are on my mind. Just figured I would share.
Happy Wednesday!
/Nat